A regretful farewell! The 35-year-old French veteran made zero appearances in this World Cup and was not used even in the consolation match, with rumors of a rift with Mbappé.

In the third-place match of the World Cup that ended on July 19 Beijing time, France lost 4-6 to England, finishing fourth. In this game, the 35-year-old French veteran Kanté sat on the bench for the entire match, ending his last World Cup career with a disappointing zero appearances.

As a distinguished veteran of the French team, Kanté made 69 appearances for the national team, contributing 2 goals and 3 assists. He was a key contributor to France's World Cup victory eight years ago. In the previous tournament when France finished as runners-up, Kanté was also an absolute starter.

However, in this World Cup, although Kanté was selected, he was not heavily utilized by Deschamps. If it could be understood that he was no longer a starter in the first seven crucial matches, in this consolation game, he still did not get a single minute of playing time, not even a dignified farewell, which is indeed thought-provoking.

Besides Kanté, other players who did not get playing time include Lucas Hernández, as well as backup goalkeepers Samba and Risser. Such treatment indeed seems somewhat disrespectful to Kanté.

Earlier, according to multiple French media reports, Kanté had almost zero interaction with Mbappé during the pre-World Cup warm-up matches. In a match in March, Kanté even had the captain's armband forcefully taken away by Mbappé who came off the bench, indicating a possible internal conflict between the two locker room leaders of the French team.

It is certain that after this World Cup, the 35-year-old Kanté will almost certainly not be selected for the French national team again. It is indeed regrettable that a veteran of great merit could not have a dignified farewell in the World Cup.